More than one in five babies born to immigrant mothers

More than one in five of all babies is born to an immigrant mother, new figures show.

In London, over half of children are born to mothers who were themselves born abroad.

The breakdown from the Government's Office for National Statistics showed that the proportion of children born to immigrant families has shot up over the past few years.

In the late 1990s, when the immigration boom ushered in by Tony Blair's election was just beginning, around 13 per cent of all babies in Britain were born to mothers who came from abroad.

The percentage rose rapidly after 1998 and passed the 20 per cent level in 2005, the new figures showed.

21 per cent of babies in the UK have mothers who were born abroad

According to the lastest count, based on 2006 birth returns, 21 per cent of babies in the UK have mothers who were born abroad.

In England the level is close to a quarter, at 23 per cent. But in London 53 per cent of children have mothers from abroad.

A report by the ONS said: "This is the highest proportion since the collection of the parents' country of birth at birth registration was introduced in 1969.

"The increase continues the marked rise over the last decade: the proportion of births to mothers from outside the UK has risen from 13 per cent in 1996."

The report also said that among births where details of fathers were included on the registration form, 15 per cent showed that both parents had been born abroad.

This suggests that around a third of foreign-born mothers who have children have a husband or partner who is British-born, the ONS said.

It added that the greatest increase in babies born to mothers from abroad had come among mothers in their late 20s and early 30s.

The figures tally with information on immigration which suggest the majority of new arrivals in the country are people in their 20s.

The Government's critics on migration warned yesterday that the figures show there is a growing risk to good integration in towns and cities.

Sir Andrew Green of the Migrationwatch think tank said: 'This is quite incontrovertible evidence of the massive impact of unlimited immigration on the whole nature of our society.

'It is absolutely essential that strict limits are placed on immigration if public confidence is to be restored.'

The new figures also show that 44 per cent of babies are now born outside marriage. Across large areas of the country, the majority of babies are born to unmarried mothers: 55 per cent in the North East, 53 per cent in Wales and 50 per cent in the North West.

However in London, where most babies are now born to foreign-born mothers, only just over a third - 36 per cent - of babies are born outside marriage.

The figures come as it was revealed that almost half of newly married couples will end up getting divorced - the highest rate of marital failure since records began.

The divorce rate has risen steadily from 37 per cent two decades ago to a new high of 45 per cent, according to official projections from the Office for National Statistics.

The findings follow statistics yesterday showing that the proportion of men and women getting married has fallen to its lowest level on record.

They suggest that huge numbers of marriages break down only a few years after the wedding day. More than one in 10 do not make it to five years and about half collapse before the 10th anniversary. But after the decade milestone, survival rates improve dramatically.

Once a marriage has lasted 20 years, only 15 per cent will end up in divorce. Beyond the silver anniversary just a handful will break down.

The divorce rate has exploded over the past century.

In 1901 there were just 512 in England and Wales, but by 1947, the year in which the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh married, divorces had reached a record level of 60,000.

Now there are around 140,000 a year - compared with 237,000 marriages - although the total is falling because fewer couples wed.

Despite the high rate of divorce around one in 10 marriages will survive through to their diamond anniversary, according to the government statisticians.

Of the 90 per cent that do not make it, half are ended by divorce and half by the death of one of the partners. The ONS figures are projections of the number of marriages in 2005 ending in divorce based on latest trends.

The figures will fuel fears that marital breakdown is running out of control with disastrous consequences for society.

Shadow home secretary David Davis said: "Over a decade ago Tony Blair coined the phrase tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime. Broken families are a major cause of crime yet Gordon Brown's policies have seen divorce rates increasing."